Trending Topics
|
Source: http://www.foreignpolicy.com/articles/2010/11/11/the_cedar_resistance
The Cedar Resistance
(Foreign Policy) Josh Block - Just a few years ago, Lebanon appeared to be a foreign-policy success for the U.S. as the Lebanese people, bolstered by international support, succeeded in expelling Syrian military forces and asserting Lebanese sovereignty for the first time in decades. These days, however, the March 14 coalition, as the ruling group is known, has been unable to capitalize on its popular mandate due to the overwhelming force wielded by Hizbullah, which is funded, trained, and armed by Iran and Syria. If the Obama administration takes a bold stand in favor of Lebanon's independence, it will find that many figures in Beirut and other countries with a stake in Lebanon's stability will enthusiastically follow its lead.